Author Topic: Osage lam saves the bow  (Read 6036 times)

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Offline GB

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Osage lam saves the bow
« on: August 30, 2015, 12:45:58 am »
Last fall I made this bow from a red elm board.  It didn't turn out great, took too much set midlimb.  I heated some reflex in it and was flipping the tips when I noticed small cracks along the wood.  So I stuck it back up in the rafters.  I couldn't bring myself to toss it because I'd backed it with cherry bark and I liked the way it looked.
A couple of weeks ago I rasped the elm down and glued a 1/4" Osage lam on the belly.  It's 65" long and draws 45 pounds.  Pretty average speed wise, but it's a nice shooter when I can manage to get my form together.
The handle is maple with a little curl to it.











« Last Edit: August 30, 2015, 02:25:59 am by GB »
Yeah, I remember when we had a President who didn't wear a tinfoil hat.

Offline sleek

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #1 on: August 30, 2015, 02:04:51 am »
Nicely done sir. In my experience red elm tends to take lots of set. I didnt know it would handle an osage belly however.  Looks like you done it and done it good at that. Nice craftsmanship.  I like it.
Tread softly and carry a bent stick.

Dont seek your happiness through the approval of others

Offline Del the cat

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #2 on: August 30, 2015, 04:17:19 am »
Nice save... :)
Del
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Offline Badger

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #3 on: August 30, 2015, 06:13:53 am »
  Very nice job on your part, I have never had luck with red elm. Beautiful tiller job!

Offline Dances with squirrels

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #4 on: August 30, 2015, 06:55:25 am »
That's a nice bow... regardless of how it got there.
Straight wood may make a better bow, but crooked wood makes a better bowyer

Offline Stixnstones

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #5 on: August 30, 2015, 07:37:47 am »
thats a beautiful piece of work right there!
DevilsBeachSelfbows

Offline PEARL DRUMS

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #6 on: August 30, 2015, 08:04:32 am »
Nice bow and wood combo. Red elm will take some stretching and osage will take some compressing.
Only when the last tree has died and the last river has been poisoned and the last fish has been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.

Offline rps3

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #7 on: August 30, 2015, 08:23:57 am »
I like the cherry backing.

Offline Pat B

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #8 on: August 30, 2015, 08:50:04 am »
Nice save!
  I've done this a few times with good results.   The cherry bark is helping with the tension.
Make the most of all that comes and the least of all that goes!    Pat Brennan  Brevard, NC

Offline Danzn Bar

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #9 on: August 30, 2015, 09:39:54 am »
Very well done......
DBar
Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking

Offline lebhuntfish

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #10 on: August 30, 2015, 10:48:00 am »
Awesome bow, nice save! Patrick
Once an Eagle Scout, always an Eagle Scout!

Missouri, where all the best wood is! Well maybe not the straightest!

Building a bow has been the most rewarding, peaceful, and frustrating things I have ever made with my own two hands!

Offline sleek

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #11 on: August 30, 2015, 10:51:24 am »
Nice save!
  I've done this a few times with good results.   The cherry bark is helping with the tension.

Does it really?! Seems weid to menbark has a viable tension strength.  It seems so thin and brittle.
Tread softly and carry a bent stick.

Dont seek your happiness through the approval of others

Offline bowandarrow473

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #12 on: August 30, 2015, 10:59:45 am »
Looks great, nice save.
Whatever you are, be a good one.

Offline Carson (CMB)

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #13 on: August 30, 2015, 12:11:10 pm »
Way to see it through. That turned out really nice.

Nice save!
  I've done this a few times with good results.   The cherry bark is helping with the tension.

Does it really?! Seems weid to menbark has a viable tension strength.  It seems so thin and brittle.

Sleek, cherry bark has incredible tension strength.
"The bow is the old first lyre,
the mono chord, the initial rune of fine art
The humanities grew out from archery as a flower from a seed
No sooner did the soft, sweet note of the bow-string charm the ear of genius than music was born, and from music came poetry and painting and..." Maurice Thompso

Offline Pat B

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Re: Osage lam saves the bow
« Reply #14 on: August 30, 2015, 12:41:58 pm »
Thanks Carson. I've found that out first hand. I think it even adds a bit of performance...but it is a specific cherry bark, not just cherry bark in general.
Make the most of all that comes and the least of all that goes!    Pat Brennan  Brevard, NC